WEDDING PLANNING FOR THE STAY AT HOME BRIDE

I know this time for me right now is concerning + scary. With more rules + regulations, it can seem as though everything is in chaos. At the beginning of this year, my company dropped my hours so I was not receiving the income I was expecting. (On that note, I was extremely grateful to still have a job). After switching jobs, work picked back up but I still spend a majority of time at home given the circumstances of COVID.

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Wedding planning is a process I have absolutely loved! It can be so easy to get lost in a fairy-tale world dreaming of everything you could want for your special day! I am also a destination bride. So planning has been a bit more difficult than normal with hundreds of emails back + forth. + wanting to meet in person to discuss specifics. Max + I were able to get some time to travel in the summer + we made one fulllll weekend of wedding planning in case restrictions tightened up again. You can see all about that wedding planning weekend here. This has allowed me to still be productive while planning. I thought I would share with you all some of the details + lists I have been/am working on, in case you are looking for things to plan as well. + if you need a good wedding planning notebook, you can find the one I’m using here!

MUSIC LIST

For the music list, I am covering three major areas: day of, ceremony, + reception. For the ceremony, this can include music for the processional and bride walk down the aisle. Max + I are getting married in a Catholic church so we have a select list to choose from for the music!

For the reception – a cocktail hour music theme should be established. Have an idea of the general vibe you are going for. Our theme is elegant + light, so I would prefer music that is not in your face + allows guests to easily talk with one another. For the reception, don’t forget other important songs: the first dance, father-daughter, mother-son, the bouquet toss/garter toss, cake cutting, etc. The DJ should also have a list of must-plays + must NOT-plays. Max + I have two different tastes in music so having a blend of our styles is important but I can say for certain, I do not want the chicken dance at my wedding haha!

For the day of, a getting ready playlist is useful to have on hand! Mimosas pair well with a good tune or two!

PICTURE LIST

Pictures are one of the most important aspects of our wedding day! So I want to make certain that I have pictures of everything! I am making a “details” list of everything I would like a picture to focus on from flower table arrangements to my mother helping me with my dress! The detail shot list ensures that the photographers get all must have photos!

I am also making a family picture list for the church. If you have ever been to a wedding, you know that pictures can take a long time after the ceremony. + Max’s family is HUGE so we definitely need a list to keep everything running smoothly. PRO TIP: Try to have between 10-15 groups of people for photos at the church.

Our photographer mentioned it takes approximately 3 minutes per group when you consider the time to get into place + actually snap all of the photos. If you have 15 groups, that is already 45 minutes + you should ALWAYS allow for buffer time. Especially since you want photos of you + your future spouse in the church on your own!

BASIC DAY-OF TIMELINE

With the wedding day approaching soon (OMG A LITTLE OVER ONE MONTH!!), it is CRUCIAL to have a day of timeline. Thankfully, we have a wedding planner who created a google doc for us to communicate through about the timeline! I have also created my own timelines for guest bags, bridal party, + family! If you are starting at the beginning, your timeline at minimum should include the ceremony start time-when you have to be out + the cocktail hour/reception start time-end time. Then as you plan other aspects of the day, you can work around those already determined times.

SAVE THE DATES/INVITATIONS

I chose to use Minted.com for my save the dates + I was very impressed with the amount of choices, customization, + the recipient addressing. For invitations, we opted to go with a formal invitation set from Etsy that you can find here. If you are just starting wedding planning, I HIGHLY suggest establishing what theme you want for your wedding. Then you can base the wording off of that. For example, our wedding attire is formal, black tie optional. So we chose to create invitations with formal wording. Make it unique to you or as traditional as you want! But you can find some great options even on a budget!!

WEDDING WEBSITE

Since there are so many moving parts to our wedding day, including hotel accommodations, a church  with a drive, transportation from the hotel for the reception, + RSVPs online, we want to make certain all information is in one place for everyone to see. I am using WeddingWire.com for our wedding website + it has been so easy! I have designated pages for events, information, RSVPs, + I can even add all of the registries we do! This is an easy thing to work on if you are home often + you can update as you find out about different events! To me, RSVPs were SO simple + you can create groups so you can allow others to help with those who may not know how to work the internet as well (;

VENDOR LIST

The last list I will be working on is my vendor list! This includes contact information for all vendors I or my wedding planner will be working with, as well as reaching out to more vendors I am still on the hunt for! Previously, I was fortunate that I had already found a majority of the MUST-HAVE vendors such as: photographers; venues (church + reception), videographer, florist, chair rentals, DJ, photo booth, officiant, wedding dress boutique + transportation from the hotel to the reception + back. The vendors I was still on the hunt for were: hair + make-up, transportation to/from the church + reception site (we will be getting ready at the reception site), + baker! EDIT: As of today 12/10/2020, I have found ALL of our vendors! But the more research you can do, the better! READ every review you can find + make sure you are certain about vendors!

What did you think of these lists? You can still make wedding planning fun, despite being home more than usual! Leave a comment below!